“Yeah, you will. It will go quick.”

“Yeah,” she said with a nod. “Make sure you win for me.”

“I always win for you,” he said with a wink before kissing her lips again. “I’ll call you when I land.”

“Okay, I love you,” she said, kissing him again.

“I love you more,” he swore, kissing her one more time before letting her go and slowly walking backward. “I’ll see you soon.”

She could only nod as she covered her lips with her hand, holding in her sob. The last time she watched him walk away, he left her for good. This time though, she didn’t feel like she was dying inside because she knew he was coming back. Though, it still sucked to see him leave. When he sent her one last wave before disappearing onto the plane, she let out the breath she was holding and let her arms fall to her sides.

“First time leaving, huh?”

Lacey turned suddenly to see Elli with her mass of children. The three boys ran circles around her while the girls stood just as pretty as their mommy, holding her hands.

“Yeah,” she said with a nod. “It’s hard.”

Elli smiled. “Yeah, I used to act like he was leaving for good, but now, I can say bye without the tears. So do the kiddos, huh?”

“Daddy will be back soon,” the tallest one said. Her eyes were bright and so beautiful.

“He goes to win hockey for us,” her sister said, a sweet little grin on her face.

“They love their daddy,” Elli said with a nod. “Once you two have children, watching him leave won’t be so hard ’cause you’ll have the kids to keep you busy.”

Lacey’s heart ached as she slowly nodded. “Yeah.”

“Anyway, I stopped to tell you to call me if you need anything. If you want to come over and watch a movie with me and my crew, you’re more than welcome to. You’re always welcome at the Adler casa.”

“Thank you, Elli. That means a lot to me,” Lacey said and it did. She didn’t think they had clicked when they first met, but maybe she was wrong. Elli was really nice.

“Anytime! This coming Friday, the girls and I are getting together for a wives-only night to watch the game, drink wine, and just spend time together without our kids. You should come!”

“Yeah, just send me a reminder,” Lacey said, but she didn’t think she would go to that. When it was just her and Elli, it was fine, but when she was surrounded by everyone, it was weird. She felt like an outsider, and she didn’t like feeling like that.

“Of course, hang in there, lady. He’ll be home in no time. Two weeks is nothing, but the month-long ones suck!”

“Month-long ones?” she asked in horror and Elli smiled.

“Yeah, but don’t worry, we wives stick together.”

“Thanks a lot,” she said, returning the smile as Elli nodded.

“Okay, well, I’ll let you get home. Call me anytime.”

“I will,” she said, even though she knew she wouldn’t. Elli was very nice, and she knew she meant well, but she didn’t know Elli like she knew, say Rachel. With her husband on that plane, she was officially completely alone in Nashville.

And that didn’t sit well with her at all.

Karson was worried about Lacey.

He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination or if she really was as miserable as she sounded. Every time he talked to her, she didn’t seem like herself. She was very short with her answers and mostly let him do the talking. It was weird. She was usually so full of life, and he didn’t know what to do to make it better. It was killing him. He shouldn’t feel bad for having to leave her, but he did, and he wasn’t sure what to do about it.

For the first time in years, he was actually considering retiring. He always thought he would play until he was old and unable to move, but after spending so many years away from her, he realized that maybe he should retire. It would give him time to be with her, start a family, and live a life with her, but as soon as the thought came to mind, he knew he couldn’t do it. He lived for hockey, and while, yes, he lived now for Lacey, she was going to have to adjust.

This was his career, the way he was going to give her everything she could ever need. He would put their children through school on this salary and travel the world with it. As hard as it was on both of them, they would survive. They loved each other more than anything in this world, and some time apart was always good. It made coming home and being together even more precious. They would just need to adjust, and then everything would be fine.

When his phone rang, he looked down, hoping it was Lacey, but still pleased to see it was his mom. If anyone would know what to do, it would be Regina King.

“Ma, what’s up?”

“Hey sweetheart, just calling to check in.”

“That’s cool, how are you?”

“Good, my hip’s been acting up. It’s a little suspect, I think.”

“Damn suspect hips, I have one myself,” he said with a grin and she laughed.

“We are getting old, my dear.”

“We are. It’s sad.”

“It is,” she laughed. “How’s LA?”

“It’s LA,” he answered with a grimace.

“That sounds nice. Are you busy? Out sight-seeing?”

He let out a breath, running his fingers through his hair. “I’m in the hotel.”

“Why? Aren’t the boys out? Isn’t that what you guys do?”